7 On Your Side: Cyber Monday shopping guide and safety tips
NEW YORK (WABC) -- While 75 million of us can't resist shopping for Cyber Monday shopping deals, 7 On Your Side has important tips to know for smart and safe shopping.
Begin with being a smart online shopper, note that not everything is on sale all over the web on Cyber Monday.
One of Cyber Monday's best bets is clothing -- look for site-wide discounts and promo codes to stack on top.
Consumer expert Janice Lieberman is eyeing a smart home system too -- one of the season's hottest gifts are on Cyber sale.
"You can unlock your door, turn on your lights, adjust your temperature all from your phone and the price will drop," Lieberman said.
Look for stores to continue TVs, tech and smartphone Black Friday discounts, but Cyber Monday is also time to think outside the gift box -- experiences are on sale too.
RELATED: Here's your shopping guide to Cyber Monday deals
BlackFriday.com says travel is deeply discounted, look for slashed hotel and airfares, plus discounts on Groupon.
Lieberman says just don't take off on buying toys. Toys will get cheaper mid-December and also Cyber Monday is not great for furniture or appliance deals. Presidents Day in February will have better discounts.
CYBERMONDAY SAFETY TIPS
Don't let your fingers walk you into a hack on Cyber Monday. Make sure you shop from a secure computer and avoid shopping on open public Wi-Fi. .
"Why open your life needlessly when your lives are already too open?" CyberScout.com founder Adam Levin said.
Levin offered other advice for a safe Cyber Monday:
Use trusted retailer sites and apps directly. Beware of fake websites which can pop up on search engines or web browsers.
Make sure to not recycle passwords. Levin says use new log-in and long and strong passwords.
"Because unfortunately so many passwords are for sale on the dark web that hackers and scammers are buying them, it's like leaving your door unlocked with a sign that says please rob me," Levin said.
He also advises don't use debit cards for online shopping. You have a much greater chance of having everything in your account drained if you get hacked and you don't have the fraud protections offered by a credit card.
Review your bank and credit card statements often during this shopping season. Levin says comb through for charges that aren't yours, sign up for alerts and report anything suspicious right away.
Make sure to use 2-factor authentication, having two ways to authenticate if it's really you will thwart hackers' attempts to steal your identity.
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